Plasma cutter

[Barnabas]

What is needed to get set up with a plasma cutter for DIY.I have seen them advertised for 'as little'(!) as £400 but presumably you need a separate compressor. Is there anything else and what is a realistic start up price all in?
Thanks

 

[oddball90]

You can get machines with a built in compressor but people say that they are not any good,( you have to keep waiting for the air). So a seperate compressor that can deliver about 5 bar of air but also a fairly high volume as you will have to wait for the compressor to build up if you are doing a lot of cutting. Might be talking complete bull as i've not got one, still on wish list.

 

[rtbcomp]

Mine takes 5cfm at 5 bar - Clarke Plasma King 35N £370 +vat

 

[Barnabas]

Thanks guys - I'm not sure that the Plasma King 35 is still available. Can anyone recommend a decent setup for diy ie cutter and compressor either combined or separate. Would it be possible to get started for about £500?

 

[rtbcomp]

Thanks guys - I'm not sure that the Plasma King 35 is still available. Can anyone recommend a decent setup for diy ie cutter and compressor either combined or separate. Would it be possible to get started for about £500?

It's listed here http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/categories/search/plasma-cutters-arctig-welders

AFAIK the three-phase machine has been discontinued.

 

[Wozzaaah]

Thanks guys - I'm not sure that the Plasma King 35 is still available. Can anyone recommend a decent setup for diy ie cutter and compressor either combined or separate. Would it be possible to get started for about £500?

Only by buying a (dare I say it?) chinese plasma.

The ones with the built in compressors are great for site work but have limited cutting capabilities. There's lots of inverter ones on the market that will cut up to 12mm with no more than a 16A supply but these need a seperate compressor. I would think that a decent 50L compressor would be sufficient to run a plasma as long as it's not for extended periods.

 

[snowcat]

The 50L compressers dont really offer the Cfm for the plasma's, When I bought my new plasma I planed to keep my little S/F lincoln and take it on site, then run it off the little 50l compresser in the truck, It would work but badly, I ended up sticking the lincoln on ebay, bottles are far more practical mobile.

 

[rtbcomp]

Look at the cfm figures, ignore the size of the receiver.

 

[irondarren]

5cfm normally means a 2hp compressor for continous useage. most 2hp compressors had an FAD of about 8cfm. about 5-6cfm on a 1.5hp compressor but a 1.5hp compressor will be running all the time the plasma is, which might mean it overheats if used for extended periods

 

[rtbcomp]

5cfm normally means a 2hp compressor for continous useage. most 2hp compressors had an FAD of about 8cfm. about 5-6cfm on a 1.5hp compressor but a 1.5hp compressor will be running all the time the plasma is, which might mean it overheats if used for extended periods

At the level we're considering I'd bet a pound to a penny that the plasma will cut out due to overheating before the compressor starts complaining.

 

[Barnabas]

Thanks for the link rtb - it was the Plasma King 70 that has been discontinued - my mistake.

So what do you think about:
Plasma King 35 which requires 4cfm and costs about £440
and
Clarke Bandit compressor which delivers 5 cfm and costs about £80 ?

It would have relatively very light use in my hands.

 

[rtbcomp]

Thanks for the link rtb - it was the Plasma King 70 that has been discontinued - my mistake.

So what do you think about:
Plasma King 35 which requires 4cfm and costs about £440
and
Clarke Bandit compressor which delivers 5 cfm and costs about £80 ?

It would have relatively very light use in my hands.

The Plasma cutter seems to work very well, but I don't have any experience of that particular compressor. My gut feeling is that it won't be up to the job.

It says in the spec that the 5cfm is piston displacement, once the air is under pressure you get less volume at the sharp end.

You can compensate for low output with the receiver, but you don't get owt for nowt, you have to wait for the receiver to fill and then you can only work as long as there's enough air in the tank. With a small receiver you have to stop and start more frequently than with a bigger receiver, with the latter you can work for longer periods but have to wait longer before you can restart.

It's quite a complicated relationship between cfm at the pump, air demand, pressure required and receiver size!

 

[Barnabas]

'... My gut feeling is that it won't be up to the job...
t's quite a complicated relationship between cfm at the pump, air demand, pressure required and receiver size!'



It's still a bit impenetrable to a beginner. What compressor in the DIY price bracket might be up to supplying the Clarke 35?
Any suggestions please?

 

[snowcat]

For all plasma's well the ones iv had they need lots of lovely flow, not so much pressure but lots of flow, If they dont have enouth cuts are bad, they eat cutting tips and there frustrating to use..

 

[peterd51]

Hi,

my cutter seems to run OK on 3 bar, around 120 ltrs per minute (according to the manual).

As I recall, my compressor is a 2 HP, 6 Bar, 172 LPM, 25 litre tank...cost me £50 (new) or so off ebay about 18 months ago.

The compressor will start up after about 15 seconds of cutting but will then stop again as I'm still cutting so it must be refilling the tank as it supplies the cutter.

Having said that, according to the specs the Clarke ones seem to take more air and cut to a lower thickness.

Regards
Peter

 

[snowcat]

Air flow is proberbly less crucial for thin plate, I was always on the edge with that little lincoln 1/4 upwards, hence the fact I sold it and went for something much bigger.